Windmill.



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE; j

Patented May 19,19o3.

WILLIAM F. 'KERRfOF CLEVELND, OHIO.

wlNoMlLL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 728,468, dated May 19,1903. Application filed April 6, 1901. Serial No. 54.731. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it knownY that I, WILLIAM F. KERR, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Cleve-v land, in the county ofCuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented a certainnew and usefulImprovement in Windmills, of which the following is 'a full, clear, andexact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings. Y

The ultimate object of this invention is to provide a very simple andefficient windmill in which the blades shall be adjustedvauto maticallyin their angle to the wind accord- I end, as hereinafter fullyexplained, and set' .f

out in the claims.v

The drawings fully disclose my invention.

Figure l is a front elevation of a windmill' made in accordancetherewith, and Fig. 2 isa vertical central section thereof.

The sameletters of reference designate the same part in each figure.

A represents a stationary support or tower for the windmill, of anysuitable construction. Pivoted in this on a vertical axis is the housingB. Secured to this housing and project-- ing rearward is the vane C,which is adapted to swing the head of the windmill into the wind.

Rotatably journaled within the housing B is the sleeve D. On the forwardend of this sleeve are a series of ears on an annular projection d,while this forward end also carries, by means of suitable spider-arms f,the ring F. The blades are designated G. Each may be a thin piece ofmetal, and it is secured to the axle g, which extends along its entirelength and projects beyond each end thereof. At the outer end this axleis journaled in the ring F, and the inner end takes through theprojection or ear d, wherefore the blade may be turned on this axis.

.On the .inner side of the projection d the axles g are cranked, asshown at g', and the extreme ends 0f these cranks take'into the groove hof a sheave H, which is on the for` ward end of the plunger H'. Thissheave may consist of a pair of collars on the plunger, as shown, or itmay be a separatemember secured rigidly or otherwise to the plunger, itsessential characteristic being the recess or groove receiving theends'of the cranked axles. The plungeris slidable within .the sleeve D,but is preferably rotatable with it. Therefore if this plunger isshifted longitudinally it acts on the cranks g to change the angle ofthe blades, and hence with a given windA velocity to change the speed ofrotation, or, conversely, asvthe wind changes a suitable governor byshifting the plunger accordingly may preserve the speed of rotation.

The wind acting on the blades obliquely tends to turn them parallel withits direction,

' which is at, right angles to the general plane of the windmill-head,and this action tends -to drive the sheave and plunger inward.- Thisaction is counteracted bya suitable governor. As shown herein, thisgovernor consists of a `Weight K, which hangs on the long arm l of thebell-crank L, pivoted to a bracket extending from the housing B andhaving its short.

arm Z bearing against the plunger H. This weight is so placed that as itrises under the iniinence of the wind its leverage increases, whereforean equilibrurn is established between the force of the wind and that ofthe weight.

It' the wind increases, it turns the blades more nearly parallel withits course and the weight rises, wherefore the wind has less effect onthe blades in proportion, and the rotation is kept substantiallyconstant. When the force of theV wind decreases, the Weight actingdownward shifts the blades so that the wind acts on them to betteradvantage,where fore the smaller wind-pressure gives substantially thesame rotation.

The gist of the present invention lies in the sheave or -groove at theforward end of the plunger, into which the cranked ends of thev axlestake. This is a very simple construction and is very eiiicient inservice. It is cheaper to construct than any of the connections be- IODtween the governor and blades with which I am familiar. It is also moredurable and less liable to get out of order.

Having described my invention, I claim 1. In a Windmill, the combinationof a sleeve, vanes and vane-supports carried by Lhe sleeve, a plungerplaying in the sleeve, collars in one end of the plunger, vane-pivotspassingthroughthesleeveandhavngcranked ends playing in the groove, and aweighted governor operating directly upon the opposite end of theplunger, substantially as described.

2. In a windmill, the combination of a standard, a sleeve journaled intbe standard,

and a plunger playing in the sleeve, vanes and vane-supports attached tothe sleeve, a recess in one head of the sleeve surrounding the end ofthe plunger, collars in the end of the plunger forming a groove,vane-pivots passing through the end of the sleeve and having crankedends resting in the groove, and a Weighted governor operating directlyupon the plunger, substantially as described. In testimony whereof Ihereunto affix my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

VILLIAM F. KERR. Witnesses:

ALBERT H. BATES, I-I. M. WISE.

